Can we show some love for the 811?

[Kevinw]

I heartily second this.

When I sit there watching "Over America" or "Arctic Mission" or "Odyssey 5" I can forgive my OTA channels falling out of the guide .... When I hear the gasp from my neighbors seeing a HD set in someone's home I can forgive an occasional "acquiring satellite signal 1 of 5" ....

You think the 811 has problems? Well yeah, it does. But go over and read the forums at AVS re: the Sony Grand VVega. Even Sony can release a product before it is fully tested/ready.

The 811 is buggier than any Dish receiver I've ever had, but then it does about 10 times more than any other Dish receiver I've had.

I am over the Gee Whiz factor of HD. I have been watching HD for over 3 years. My first HD tuner was a Pioneer SH-D505 Listed at 2500 dollars -paid 250 from a refurbished electronics house. It had issues but nothing like the 811.
This technology is not new anymore. There are enough tuners on the market to get this right upon release or at least nearly right.
The biggest annoyance is the "Acquiring Satellite" 3-5 times a day is not occasional. It is really a pain when looking for transponder 4, then it locks up. If this is typical of satellite based Hd tuners then I guess we have to live with it.
No way is the 811 ready for primetime at full price. 99-150 is all it is worth untill the issues are resolved. The positive is that as an HD tuner it has very good PQ and has the added benefit of being a satellite tuner also.
If one wanted OTA only and not the rest there are better tuners out there. For now when I want to watch the Hd package I use the 811 otherwise for OTA it's my Samsung Sir-t351 for OTA and the 311 for Dish Sd programming

 

[sprinklerguy]

Guess I am lucky....I only have to deal with the CC issue...and occasional lock up....twice in 1 month....and I do have to wait 30 seconds once per day for the guide to download.

 

[silversurfer]

NightRyder, I would agree with you about cutting edge technology but look at E*s track record. When was the last time they released a bug free receiver out of the box? The first generation 3000 and 5000s? I used to have a 3000 and I loved it but had to go overseas. When I came back I researched both D* and E* and went with D* due to all the problems with E*s receivers. I am not trying to start a flame war but defending E* on this issue is in my opinion is ludacris and it is amazing what people put up with and get used to. If we had these kinds of problems with our vehicles I bet there would be some serious lawsuits....

 

[MikeF]

The 811 was released on what a Tues or Wed. Guy delivered it on Sat, so I can say I have had it about as long as you can. I have all the issues most have but the most annoying to me is the dark picture. I can only get 2 digital ota stations in my area and the 811 picks them both up. I am thinking of putting an antenna switch in the ota line and bypassing the 811 and going direct to my Hitachi to solve the analog problem. Or just watch the local feeds I get from KC over the dish. I do have to admit that I only use the 811 for HD ota or HD-SHO at the moment. But I do have a 510 hooked to the Hitachi and that is what I use to watch SD until they get the Darkness fixed. I feel that the potential upsude in PQ of the 811 is worth the wait.

 

[AcuraCL]

...
The biggest annoyance is the "Acquiring Satellite" 3-5 times a day is not occasional. ...

I only get this when I hit the Guide button when I'm viewing an OTA HD channel. After it happening 2 -3 times, I learned to switch to a Dish channel before hitting Guide.

I know, I know, you should not have to do this !! But it's like the guy who goes to the doctor complaining that it hurts when he does this (making a motion). You know, until it's fixed, I just don't "do this."

 

[AcuraCL]

If we had these kinds of problems with our vehicles I bet there would be some serious lawsuits....

When there are problems with cars, people die. When you buy a car, it costs $15000. There dam well better be fewer problems.

OTOH, what are the consequences of a buggy satellite receiver? Some inconvenience and annoyance.

Be realistic. Products from all kinds of companies have problems. E.g., Windows 95, Window 98, Windows Me, Sony Grand VVega III ....

 

[GaryPen]

When there are problems with cars, people die. When you buy a car, it costs $15000. There dam well better be fewer problems.

OTOH, what are the consequences of a buggy satellite receiver? Some inconvenience and annoyance.

Be realistic. Products from all kinds of companies have problems. E.g., Windows 95, Window 98, Windows Me, Sony Grand VVega III ....

Nobody dies if a car's climate control, audio system, or moonroof fail to operate. Yet, if your CL came with all of those features inoperative, or operating in the same fashion as many of the 811's features, you'd definitely be complaing to your dealer. (If you didn't, your judgement would be suspect.)

Did you have the dreaded Honda/Acura transmission problem yet? If you did, I'll bet you went right into the dealer, and asked to have it fixed immediately. You didn't have to. The car worked. It got you from A to B. It just didn't do it properly. No biggie, right?

When you chose your CL, I'll bet reliability and dependability was a big factor in your decision-making. Why is a satellite receiver, or any consumer product any different?

And just because MS releases buggy software doesn't make it OK for any other company to release defective products. None of my other electronic products exhibits anything like what I have experienced with the 811. They all work correctly out of the box. If not, they are returned. It doesn't happen often, but at least there's no $240 fee for doing so.

 

[silversurfer]

GaryPen, My point exactly why do we put up with this crap. The only way its going to change is to take your money elsewhere....

 

[AdamB]

Being a Mets fan explains your patience.

AdamB

Patience is a virtue, as they say.

 

[NightRyder]

NightRyder, I would agree with you about cutting edge technology but look at E*s track record. When was the last time they released a bug free receiver out of the box? The first generation 3000 and 5000s? I used to have a 3000 and I loved it but had to go overseas. When I came back I researched both D* and E* and went with D* due to all the problems with E*s receivers. I am not trying to start a flame war but defending E* on this issue is in my opinion is ludacris and it is amazing what people put up with and get used to. If we had these kinds of problems with our vehicles I bet there would be some serious lawsuits....

[From my original post] :shocked
"This is not intended as a defense for Dish or an excuse for the 811 bugs. "
[End] :shocked

silversurfer01973, It would be silly to get into a flame war with someone who doesn't use the receiver in question or even subscribe to the service the receiver is intended for.

Different people have very different reasons for making the choices they do. I have no overriding love of Dish or any irrational need to defend their service or equipment. They simply have provided a service I find superior to the other options available to me over the last 5 years. I also have not had anywhere near the problems with my equipment that reading these boards would lead you to believe I should. I am not discounting other posters problems but my experience along with other Dish subscribers in my local area has been nowhere near as painful or traumatic

My 811 is used exclusively for Dish HD, OTA is not even an option. I use my 508 for SD and consider the $298 I have invested in both receivers to be money well spent. Don't know what to say beyond that. If your happy with your choice, great. I'm also quite content with mine.

NightRyder

 

[NightRyder]

GaryPen, My point exactly why do we put up with this crap. The only way its going to change is to take your money elsewhere....

You mean like my Podunk cable company or Pegasus? Your kidding right?

NightRyder

 

[GaryPen]

Being a Mets fan explains your patience.

AdamB

But I do get angry when they come out with a new team that isn't ready for the majors. (I wonder if Charlie is a part owner.)

 

[GaryPen]

You mean like my Podunk cable company or Pegasus? Your kidding right?

NightRyder

He probably meant for those that have a viable choice, like those who can order DirecTV directly from D*, or those in an area with decent cable service, or even Voom.

For you, Dish appears to be the best choice.

 

[NightRyder]

He probably meant for those that have a viable choice, like those who can order DirecTV directly from D*, or those in an area with decent cable service, or even Voom.

I know. It was meant to be tongue in cheek, hence the

Also I just wanted to make a point that many of us that choose Dish aren't gullible or stupid. There simply isn't any other acceptable alternative. Not even Voom

NightRyder

 

[kn6k]

I have had my 811 since Mid January. So far it has worked very well, only 2 re-boots due to audio dropouts. I never get the Acquiring Satelite message.
The S-video is slightly dark but not that much different than Comcast analog which we also get. So far I am Happy with mine.

 

[GaryPen]

I have had my 811 since Mid January. So far it has worked very well, only 2 re-boots due to audio dropouts. I never get the Acquiring Satelite message.
The S-video is slightly dark but not that much different than Comcast analog which we also get. So far I am Happy with mine.

I want what he has!

 

[Petew]

I just got my new 811 today. It is awsome when compared to the 6000 that it replaced.
It picks up 4 additional OTA HD stations and locks on immediately and is rock solid on stations that that used to cut in and out with the 6000. Hopefully they have solved most of the issues they had.

 

[AdamB]

Well i've had my 811 for a whopping 5 days now. When I posted at the two-day mark, everything was fine and dandy. Now i'm experiencing the following:

1. Has intermittently froze (twice now in 5days). (Have to power it off/on at the box)
2. DD problem. When I tune to an HD channel (dish or OTA) sometimes i'll only hear my subwoofer. I'll either have to switch channels back and forth to fix or go into my TV's submenu for theater setup and swith from movie to sports back to movie and that will fix.
3. One of my 9 local digital channels (ABC) will not lock over 49%. I just sit there and watch it jump from 49% to 75% then back to 49%, then the error. This ABC antenna is right next to the antennas where i'm getting 80-90% locks. Strange and aggravating.

AdamB

 

[ocaddict]

Well i've had my 811 for a whopping 5 days now. When I posted at the two-day mark, everything was fine and dandy. Now i'm experiencing the following:

1. Has intermittently froze (twice now in 5days). (Have to power it off/on at the box)
2. DD problem. When I tune to an HD channel (dish or OTA) sometimes i'll only hear my subwoofer. I'll either have to switch channels back and forth to fix or go into my TV's submenu for theater setup and swith from movie to sports back to movie and that will fix.
3. One of my 9 local digital channels (ABC) will not lock over 49%. I just sit there and watch it jump from 49% to 75% then back to 49%, then the error. This ABC antenna is right next to the antennas where i'm getting 80-90% locks. Strange and aggravating.

AdamB

I just got 336$ for mine on ebay. I suggest putting it up for sale while they are still worth something.